


yet still, you waver

by ryoken



Category: Yu-Gi-Oh! VRAINS
Genre: Alternate Universe - Vampire, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-29
Updated: 2018-03-29
Packaged: 2019-04-14 08:20:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,345
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14132007
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ryoken/pseuds/ryoken
Summary: the darkness over there is bitter;the darkness over here is sweetAfter everything, Yusaku still has personal business to attend to.





	yet still, you waver

**Author's Note:**

> 1; in this au ryoken lives in an old gothic mansion that yusaku calls "western-style". intentional. it gives the atmosphere of something vampiric, but it's a bit out of place in den city, japan, ain't it? which is why he points it out.
> 
> 2; uhmm desc lyrics are kuchizuke by buck-tick bcos... vampire song
> 
> 3; no steppy
> 
> i haven't been able to write something simple like this in a while lol

A devil has appeared on Ryoken’s doorstep. On a cold, rainy night (as devils do).

 

“The huge western-style mansion, on the top of a hill?” Yusaku comments, moments after Ryoken opens the door, “I always assumed you would’ve been more inconspicuous.”

 

He can’t help himself but reply, “I didn’t build this place.” He really shouldn’t be giving out details like that so easily, even if they’re trivial. Besides, this isn’t Yusaku’s first time around here. Though the last time was more of a confrontation, than a visit. He’s just trying to provoke him.

 

“I see,” Yusaku walks through the threshold without asking.

 

The entrance has a high, billowing roof, but the space where Ryoken stands with Yusaku is narrow and suffocating. Ryoken stares downwards as he watches Yusaku carefully remove each boot, meticulous, and wonders why he even allows this. The last thing he needs in his life is this man, but he cannot look away. Yusaku neatly puts away his cloak on the coat rack and lines his boots up against the wall.

 

“You’re fairly bold,” Ryoken says, “To walk directly into a vampire’s abode in the dead of night.” Oh, he’s trying to sound tough. Yusaku notices.

 

“Is that your way of telling me I should leave?” Yusaku asks him. Ryoken has been given this question before, in a much different context, far away from this house. They’ve played with this game. He knows, without a doubt, he could say _Yes, you should leave, and don’t come back this time._ And he knows Yusaku would listen to him. That is, of course, half the problem. Despite it all, Ryoken knows Yusaku really would turn around and vanish into the darkness, and he wouldn’t be able to see him again unless he actively searched him out. And Ryoken has too much pride for such things.

 

“No, stay,” Ryoken concedes, looking away, “I’m not discourteous enough to make you walk home in this rain.”

 

“How kind.” Ryoken can see the hint of a smile on the devil’s face. He knows at this point he shouldn’t respond, that he’ll only work himself up. He has some self-restraint.

 

They move through Ryoken’s house, and Ryoken points out where the kitchen, spare bedroom, et cetera, are as they ascend the floors. Yusaku already knows what the first floor looks like. But they’re playing at being guest and host, and Ryoken isn’t willing to drop the mask yet.

 

Ryoken walks up the stairs at a pace just a bit too fast for humans, but Yusaku follows without breaking a sweat or indicating he is doing anything but leisurely walking along with Ryoken. Has he gotten more athletic lately? Maybe it’s just his imagination.

 

Halfway to the third floor, where Yusaku knows he can’t really be chased out but could survive a throw out the window, Yusaku speaks. In a voice like he’s commenting on the poor weather outside; “I’m sorry about your father.”

 

Ryoken, pointedly, does not look behind him when he says, “Are you?”

 

“Not really,” He keeps the same nonchalant tone when he replies. Yusaku is nothing if not honest. Despite all his secrets, he never speaks a lie. _You’re colder than me and I’m dead_ , Ryoken doesn’t say. No, he wouldn’t say something like that. He knows very well why Yusaku cannot be particularly bothered to grieve over that man for him, and even with his own feelings, Ryoken can’t find it in him to fault him for it. They stop at the doorway to Ryoken’s bedroom. Ryoken stands in the hall and looks at Yusaku, silenting prompting him to say whatever it is he came here to say, or do.

 

But he doesn’t. They stare at each other in silence, until Ryoken can’t take it anymore.

 

“Are you here to try and drag me into the light again, or to just make meager small talk until I throw you out? Was it not enough to prove your point before? To make me stop everything I threw my life into?” Ryoken asks him. Yusaku looks like he’s debating what he wants to say.

 

“I’m sorry,” Yusaku replies. It’s no longer weather talk, but Ryoken struggles to determine how sincere he actually is. Maybe he should go back to a more sarcastic tone.

 

“Oh?”

 

“I didn’t want you to destroy everything before, is all. But I also wasn’t able to truly help you back then, was I?” Yusaku has begun to slip into a more tender tone, as opposed to his usual distant speech. Ryoken takes note of it.

 

“Helping me would’ve been not interfering.”

 

“I couldn’t do that. You really did almost destroy everything” Including yourself, Ryoken. Yusaku decides not to mention that part.

 

“You know, you’re not a human, yet you go out of you way to keep them safe. Even when it slows you down.” Ryoken says to him, thinking back.

 

“I’m almost human,” Yusaku shrugs, “Only you’d ever know the difference. Are you jealous of humanity?” Ryoken rolls his eyes at his question, but he knows what he’d get if he looked in Yusaku’s eyes. _Don’t you know? It’s you I wish to save first, isn’t it? Surely you’ve caught on that I haven’t given up yet._

 

Ryoken has caught on. Mostly. Not on purpose.

 

“So, the point,” Ryoken starts, “Why are you here?”

 

“I assume you haven’t been able to drink in a while, haven’t you?” Yusaku responds to questions with questions. Of course.

 

“I had a coffee this morning.”

 

“Yes, I know. I watched you buy it from Kusanagi-san. But–”

 

“I’m not in a violent desperate hunger, if that’s what you’re asking.”

 

“So it has been a while?”

 

“I just haven’t had the time,” Ryoken looks irritated, and the tiniest bit self-conscious. _If you’re trying to imply something about how I look, just say it._ He can’t look that pallid, can he?

 

“Then I’m good enough, aren’t I?” Yusaku says, opening the heavy door behind him to Ryoken’s room. He’s not even half a foot away from Ryoken. It’s honestly joke that he would even say that. Yusaku is, while not a vampire, something of a... progenitor, you might say, of vampires. Not naturally (you can blame his father for that) and being otherwise completely human (as he had been at birth) his blood is tailored specifically to the taste and nutritional needs of vampires. The most expensive type of blood on earth, though Yusaku lives in near squalor.

 

“And it’ll keep your mouth off anyone else.” Yusaku says, as if Ryoken is one to go around feeding on anyone. As if Yusaku has to worry about Ryoken attacking random humans in the night. Well, he has attacked random humans before. But not in a vampire way. In the normal murder way.

 

“I don’t need,” Ryoken states, keeping his voice firm, “You forcing yourself into becoming some sacrificial goat.”

 

“Is that what you think I’m doing?” Yusaku asks, raising his eyebrows. He tilts his head as Ryoken keeps eye contact with him, and drags his hand up to his mouth. Ryoken doesn’t move. Yusaku knows he’s being examined, that he’s being searched for intention, for motive. Using his index finger, Yusaku cuts a line across his lower lip. It’s quite convenient, actually, that his nails are sharp enough. He takes a step towards Ryoken.

 

“I don’t have any interest in becoming a martyr,” Yusaku says simply, “Didn’t you hear what I said before? I wanted to save you, so I’m going to help you.” Ryoken stares at the devil’s mouth as he speaks.

 

Ryoken tries to consider what Yusaku is saying with a clear mind, but it’s giving him a headache to even attempt. Yusaku Fujiki is asking him to drink his blood? Yusaku is asking, him, to drink his blood. He has to be asking for something in return, right? That’s how this goes. He should take a step back and find out what it is first. Yusaku is asking him to drink his blood.

 

“Why?” Ryoken forces the words out of his mouth. Yusaku furrows his brows, but he looks amused. He grabs Ryoken’s wrists and leads him backwards into the room.

 

“You really are… so bad at listening,” Yusaku tells him. He stops right before hitting his back on Ryoken’s wardrobe, and turns his head as he leans closer to Ryoken. He moves like he’s trying going to speak in Ryoken’s ear, but he stops just close enough to his face instead, nearly brushing their noses together. He takes a long breath before speaking.

 

“I want you to be with me.”

 

“And what does ‘be _with me_ ’ specify, exactly,” Ryoken’s voice is surprisingly strong for now he feels like he’s about to pass out. He’s freed his wrist from Yusaku’s grip at this point, and exchanged it for grabbing onto Yusaku’s shoulders instead, holding on to keep himself steady. Yusaku makes a short noise of frustration.

 

“Vampires and their endless inquiries,” He says, “I’ve gotten my revenge, but I need to pay you back too, right?”

 

Ryoken isn’t entirely confident in that response. But his face turns a small amount, drawing his mouth closer to Yusaku’s blood, almost kissing the tip of his mouth, yet not close enough. He’s so hungry and desperate to the point he’s almost nauseous, almost sick from the scent of truly good blood, but he is still making a last ditch effort to keep his wits about him.

 

“So this is your payment to me, then?” Yes, Ryoken knows, maybe vampires take people’s words far too seriously. But it’s common sense to establish the return conditions of a drink before you go at it – it’s a necessity to be allowed to be trusted in society, after all.

 

Yusaku leans his head away, and Ryoken can’t read the emotion on his face – disappointment, agitation, impatience? He’s far enough back Ryoken can think a tad bit easier, and look Yusaku straight in the eyes. The wound on his lip isn’t bleeding as much anymore, which probably means they’ve prolonged this pre-drinking interaction a bit too much.

 

“I don’t want this to just be a transaction,” Yusaku tells him. What more does he want?

 

“What do you want this to be?” Ryoken doesn’t hide the annoyance in his question.

 

“I want you to,” Yusaku scrunches up his face.

 

“To…?” Ryoken says, prodding Yusaku to finish his sentence.

 

“To… ugh, do I really need to say it? I was trying to confess to you and make you fall for me.” Using my dry wit and blood, Yusaku could say, but this has gone off track enough already.

 

Ryoken’s mind stops in its tracks. He’s taken off guard so severely his loudly empty stomach doesn’t even register anymore.

 

“You were trying to _confess_?” Ryoken looks honestly confused, removing his hands from Yusaku’s shoulders to place them on his own hips, “How? How was that, in any way, confessing!?”

 

Yusaku rolls his eyes.

 

“First; ‘I want to help you’, second; ‘I want to keep you from drinking other people’s blood’, third; ‘I want you to be with me’. Did none of that get through to you?”

 

“Not like _that_.”

 

Yusaku takes the hand he didn’t use to cut his lip and holds his face in his hand. A moment later, Ryoken takes his hands off his hips and let’s them fall at his side. He still has Yusaku up against his wardrobe in his room, in fairly close proximity to his body, while Yusaku still has a bloody lip. And they’re having this conversation now.

 

They both pause, for a second. To process.

 

“So you’ve fallen for me?” Ryoken asks, shifting gears to what could be called a more smug disposition.

 

“Yes,” Yusaku replies, exasperated. Ryoken’s face turns red, despite himself (and his undead status).

 

“It seems I may have ruined the mood, though.”

 

“Just a bit.”

 

“If I swept you off your feet and to the bed to drink your blood, would that improve it?”

 

“Absolutely no– oh my god.”

 

In one fell swoop, Ryoken bent downwards to hook his arms under Yusaku and lift him up. He can feel himself struggling a bit because, admittedly, he’s very much on the weaker side for a vampire, but he doesn’t allow it to show. And, he notes, Yusaku cannot be anymore than 50kg. Yusaku looks about as surprised as Ryoken is that he managed it. Thank god his bed is only a couple metres away, or this illusion would shatter relatively quickly.

 

He walks over with a couple long strides and dumps Yusaku on the bed unceremoniously. For the first time, Yusaku seems to be embarrassed. It’s harder to tell, though, since his face is apparently incapable of flushing. Ryoken stands over him for a moment, trying to decide how he should go about… this, now.

 

Yusaku gives him a look he can’t decipher, grabbing Ryoken’s closest wrist and pulling him down to his level. Ryoken follows without resistance until he’s almost completely over Yusaku’s body. He’s quickly regained his shamelessness from before, Ryoken thinks. He can tell Yusaku is trying to quickly refresh the wound on his mouth with his nails, turning his entire mouth red, giving Ryoken less and less reason to do something so pointless as to _think_ this time.

 

“So?” Ryoken prompts, wide eyed, asking Yusaku to finish what he was saying a moment before as he watches him claw at his mouth.

 

“You’re taking too long,” Yusaku says flatly. He removes his hands from his lips in favor of grabbing the sides of Ryoken’s head, crashing their mouths into each other.

 

The pains of clashing teeth and Yusaku’s death grip on his hair doesn’t register for Ryoken at all as the smell he had been trying to ignore this whole time was finally pressed up against his lips. Yusaku gives him multiple kisses over the general area of Ryoken’s mouth in quick succession, a silent request to please hurry up and return the favor. Ryoken obliges, though selfishly, opening his mouth and running his tongue across Yusaku’s bloody mouth.

 

With the taste of blood in his mouth, Ryoken frantically brings his hands to hold Yusaku’s face still, lapping up as much of the blood as he can. It’s terrible, awful, horrible how fast he melts into a single minded trance. His fangs make tiny cuts across Yusaku’s mouth as he continues to drink, saliva breaking down blood clots as they try to form.

 

Yusaku keeps his grip in Ryoken’s hair, allowing him to attack his mouth without trouble. He should probably care about the dizziness he’s beginning to feel, but he can’t bring himself to, can’t conceptualize the feeling as out of place. Though he can sense when Ryoken begins to slow down on lapping up his blood and focuses on actually kissing again, his heart is still racing in the same way as if he was still being devoured. Ryoken kisses like he doesn’t have a handle on being gentle, though he attempts it, and Yusaku wonders if the dizziness is actually caused by the blood loss or not.

 

“Ah –” There’s a moment, and Yusaku feels Ryoken’s fangs brush over the open cuts as he moves, causing his mouth to sting in a way he couldn’t ignore, “Hey, hey.” He says into Ryoken’s mouth, muffling him too much to hear.

 

Yusaku tightens the grip on Ryoken’s hair and forcibly pulls his face back.

 

“Ack – what is it?” Ryoken asks, taking slow breaths as he looks down at Yusaku with that seem half wild.

 

“My mouth hurts,” Yusaku says honestly.

 

“Oh, hm…” Ryoken seems to just be clueing in to the amount of cuts on Yusaku’s stained lips, analyzing the mess in front of him, “You should’ve just let me bite your wrist like a normal person.”

 

“...That’s not romantic,” Yusaku says. Ryoken can’t help himself from scoffing at him, and brings up a hand to wipe the excess blood off his own face.

 

“I can think of many different ways you could’ve done that ‘romantically’ that didn’t involve confessing with your blood,” Ryoken informs him. He starts to sit up again, positioning himself beside Yusaku instead of awkwardly trying to hover over him.

 

“I was fumbling a bit, I guess,” Yusaku can at least admit that.

 

“You tried to make small talk by asking about my dead father before seducing me,” Ryoken responds casually, turning away from Yusaku to the bedside table and opening a drawer.

 

“...Don’t call it seducing.”

  
  
“What else would you call that?!”

 

“I wanted you to understand… how I felt.” As Yusaku spoke, Ryoken handed him a bottle of iron supplements. Yusaku gives him a momentarily confused look before he catches sight of the label.

 

“Uh-huh.”

 

“I didn’t plan very well. I wasn’t thinking I’d get very far with you,” Yusaku admits, shrugging. He dry swallows one of the iron pills.

 

“How far did you expect to get?” Ryoken questions.

 

“Given how you were last time I saw you? I thought you’d drink my blood and throw me out. Then I’d come over again to do that a few times until you understood I was being serious.”

 

“...Your image of me is fairly… cruel.”

 

“Given how you were last time I saw you, I thought you wouldn’t want to hear much from me.”

 

Ryoken sighs, “I suppose. I wasn’t coping well back then.”

 

“Yes, I noticed. It’s fine, though. Why do you keep iron supplements in your drawer?” Yusaku asks as he hands the bottle to Ryoken, who looks embarrassed by the question.

 

“It’s not for any weird reason,” Ryoken replies defensively, “I’m also anemic.”

 

“You’re an anemic vampire and you _stopped_ drinking?” Yusaku says. Ryoken can physically feel the judging look in Yusaku’s eyes on him as he puts the bottle away.

 

“I have what I need! I don’t need you to get all concerned for me.”

 

“You can’t stop me from being concerned,” Yusaku says.

 

“I’ll find a way,” Ryoken replies indignantly.

 

Yusaku gives him a genuinely upset look, and Ryoken feels a pang of… something. “Please don’t do that.”

 

“Argh, Jesus,” Ryoken says, “Fine, alright. I know you will anyway.” Yusaku looks relieved, which makes Ryoken feel better, and they end up staring at each other in silence for a while. He’s officially fucked.

 

“I guess I should go,” Yusaku says, “I can come back in 3 days to make sure you can drink again, or we can go together to pick something up from a blood bank if you’d like.”

 

“Hold on,” Ryoken stops him, “Go where? It’s 3AM. And raining.”

 

“So? That’s just afternoon for you.”

 

“But it’s not afternoon for _you_!”

 

“Are you worried?”

 

“Ugh,” Ryoken glares at Yusaku, “Stay over tonight.” Yusaku looks like he was unprepared for such a straightforward request. But Ryoken is getting just a bit sick of their verbal battles, so he might as well just cut to the point, right? Right.

 

“Fine. Let me text Kusanagi-san that I’ll be in late tomorrow.” Ryoken lets out a breath of relief at Yusaku’s reply.

 

“Good, good… I still have things to do today, so I’ll be going downstairs, but you can sleep in here if you’d like,” Ryoken offers him.

 

“Mmm…” Yusaku pretends to ponder on it as he is obviously comfortable laying on Ryoken’s bed, gazing at his phone and not Ryoken, “Are you actually that busy right now?”

 

“Yes,” Ryoken says honestly.

 

“Alright, so you can’t stay in bed awhile first?” Yusaku questions, putting away his phone on the other bedside table.

 

“...Well… I probably can stay… until you fall asleep.”

 

“I was hoping so,” Yusaku gives Ryoken a genuine smile. Ryoken tries, and fails, not to give him a dumb embarrassed smile in return.

 

He looks over Yusaku once, right when he’s thinking of lying down with him.

 

Ryoken pauses, and decides to ask before he does anything, “Should I get you a set of PJs to sleep in first?” Yusaku looks down at his rather uncomfortable uniform. For the first time, his ears turn red as he seems particularly embarrassed about it.

 

“...Yes, thank you.”

**Author's Note:**

> ah fuck... i almost wanna write... more of this...  
> my twts @ ryoukenkogami ofc


End file.
